


We Both Knew

by malum_animi



Category: Avenged Sevenfold
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-17
Updated: 2013-11-04
Packaged: 2017-12-29 16:27:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1007561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malum_animi/pseuds/malum_animi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Matt's had enough of Brian's drinking, Brian's had enough of Matt's smothering. With their relationship crumbling, will it take divine intervention to solve their problems or has Heaven's newest guardian angel just made things worse?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [We Both Knew](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/29244) by wolfphantom16. 



> This is a adaptation of the amazing comic by wolfphantom16 over on deviantart! They were kind enough to let me turn it into a story. Go check this one out and the rest of their work!

Matt groaned and blinked his eyes open, his tired mind registering the insistent pounding on the hotel door. Glancing over at the digital clock he swore, it was one in the fucking morning. He was going to _kill_ whoever thought it would be a good idea to wake him up when they had to be up in four hours. He threw the sheet off and rolled off the bed, grumbling to himself as he unchained and unlocked the door, throwing it open to glare darkly at the man on the other side.

 

“Matt Sanders?” The man asked, arms crossed and glaring right back at him.

 

“Who wants to know?”

 

“I'm with hotel management. I need you to come down to the lobby with me.”

 

Matt sighed and rubbed a hand over his eyes, what had his band gotten into now. There was no other reason he'd be called on this early in the morning. He hoped Johnny hadn't found another fountain to jump in.

 

“Fine, just...give me a second.” he shut the door and grabbed a pair of Brian's sleep pants, slipping them on, forgoing shoes and stuffed the room key into a pocket before joining the manager in the hall.

 

The man, Jeff, going by his name tag, said nothing, arms still crossed, foot tapping impatiently as they waited for the elevator.

 

“Have they broken anything?” Matt asked as the elevator pinged and the doors slide open. “Have they broken each other?” It wouldn't be the first time a drunk Johnny picked a fight with Zack or Brian. Matt just hoped they hadn't dragged Arin along. He was hoping to spare the kid from the worst of their antics for at least a little while.

 

The elevator doors shut and it jerked into motion. Jeff sighed and uncrossed his arms “Look, Mr. Sanders, I realize your band is somewhat famous, but that doesn't mean you can come in and trash my lobby.”

 

The elevator pinged and shuddered to a stop, and before Matt could respond the door slid open and he groaned, slumping as he saw the damage to the lobby.

 

“Is he yours?” Jeff pointed out at the lobby, where Brian was standing on the table, surrounded by chanting fans and overturned chairs, chugging down what looked like a pint of beer.

 

“Unfortunately.”

 

“Well, you need to control him or I'm going to have to ask you and your band to leave.”

 

Matt nodded “I'll get him. And I'll send out tour manager over in the morning to see about the damages.” he nodded at Jeff and strode out of the elevator, pushing through the fans that had gathered around Brian. It wasn't until he got to the table that Brian noticed him.

 

“Hey it's M. Shadows! G-guys! It's M. Shadows!” Brian called out drunkenly, throwing his arms up and swaying precariously.

 

Matt smiled briefly at them, patting two girls who'd all but attached themselves to him on the arms before pushing closer to Brian “Brian it's one in the morning! We have to be on the road in five hours!”

 

Brian drained the glass in his hand “So?”

 

Matt stared at him incredulously “So? You need sleep! _I_ need sleep! Get down from there!”

 

Brian smirked down at him “Make me.”

 

“Brian they're going to kick us out if you don't stop!” Matt sighed, crossing his arms and glaring up at Brian. The fans had finally backed off, he guessed they realized he wasn't in the best mood in the world.

 

“I don't give a fuck.”

 

Matt growled and as Brian swayed toward him he grabbed the guitarist by the legs, unceremoniously throwing him over his shoulder, one hand on his leg and the other on his back, gripping tightly as Brian tried to squirm free. He turned and walked back toward the elevator, calling out to the fans still lingering in the lobby “Say goodnight to Synyster Gates, he needs his sleep!”

 

“Put me down!”

 

And Matt did. He dropped Brian roughly on his feet inside the elevator, watching as Brian wobbled and braced himself in a corner. “...gonna barf...”

 

“Puke in here and I will end you.” Matt growled, jabbing the button for their floor angrily.

 

“I was having fun y'know.”

 

“I don't care.”

 

“Course you don't” Brian grumbled “You hate fun.”

 

Matt turned and glared at him, “We've been doing this whole band thing, you know, our _jobs_ for well over a decade. How have you not learned the schedule? How do you not know a work night from a free night?” the doors pings and slid open and Matt dragged Brian up and out of the elevator.

 

“I know the—ow, let go—difference!”

 

“Oh? What's the number one work night rule?”

 

Brian shoved him away “It's let the fuck go of me, that’s what it is!”

 

Seeing their room, Matt sighed and let Brian go “Fine.” watching as he tipped forward and landed on the floor with a thump. Rolling his eyes, he held a hand out, pulling Brian back to his feet, “It's no drinking on work nights, which you've been doing for four weeks.”

 

“I like being drunk.”

 

“You've been sounding like shit on stage for a month.”

 

Brian fell back against the wall, too drunk to hold himself up as Matt unlocked the door “What?!”

 

The door swung open and he pushed past Matt, using the wall to keep himself up right, slapping Matt's arm away as he tried to help “Let go.”

 

He stumbled to one of the beds and glared at Matt as he tried to pull one of his boots off “Sound like shit? I don't sound like shit. You're an asshole.”

 

Matt sighed “I'm making coffee for you to sober up.”

 

“I don't want coffee!”

 

He looked over at Brian as the coffee machine started up “I don't care. I'm not putting up with you when you're—oh for fuck's sake, untie you're shoe!”

 

“Make me!”

 

Could Brian get any more childish? “You're going to sprain you're goddamn ankle by trying to force it off!”

 

“Good! I hope I do!”

 

Make that a yes. “Fucking idiot...” Matt mumbled as Brian gave up and flopped back against the bed. “You know, it's really unattractive when you get shit-faced.” he sighed “I hate when you're like this.”

 

Brian propped himself up on his elbows “If you hate me, then why don't you leave me?”

 

“I don't hate you, you moron, I hate the tantrums you throw when you're drunk.”

 

Brian snorted and sat up “Maybe if you were more fun to be around, I'd drink less.” he grumbled, reaching down to pull at his boot again.

 

Matt stilled and looked up from the coffee maker “...you don't like being with me?”

 

“You're always so bossy and borin', who would want to hang out with you?” He pulled on the boot again, grinning as it slipped off his heel “You suck the fun outta everything.” another pull and the boot finally slipped off, Brian falling back and holding it up with a triumphant “Yes!”

 

Matt stared at him, was that what Brian really though of him? The coffee maker beeped again and Matt turned it off “Coffee's ready.” he mumbled, turning away from it to crawl into the other bed. “Goodnight.”

 

Brian watched him “Whatever.” he sneered, turned away from Matt to curl up, not even bothering to finish undressing or get under the sheets. If Matt wanted to be like that, then fuck him.

 

 

 

 

 _Oh fuck no._  Jimmy thought as he watched his friends finally drift off to sleep. He'd been watched over them since his death, and he'd be damned if he sat here and watched the fuckers ruin their relationship like this. He glanced up over his shoulder “Hey G-man?”

 

The air around him vibrated with a sigh _Jimmy please stop calling me that._

 

“Yeah, sorry. Hey, I know the whole manipulating lived thing is frowned on but I've got an idea.”

 

_I don't like where this is going._

 

“Here me out!” Jimmy grinned “I think this might help my friends! They're having trouble understanding each other and I think maybe--”

 

_Don't lie to me Jimmy._

 

Jimmy held his hands up placatingly “Whoa, whoa, God. I would not lie to you.”

 

_I know what you want to do, and I don't see the benefit._

 

Jimmy grinned “You said that about me teaching Jesus the drums and look how good he is!” the grin dropped and he looked up seriously “Just please Father, give this 24 hours to run it's course, I have a feeling it'll work.”

 

_Only if you answer me truthfully._

 

“Of course!”

 

 _Is this for the benefit of your friends_ and _your entertainment?_

 

Jimmy stilled “Uh...well...yeah.” He missed pranking the guys, but he'd get his amusement in other ways.

 

_Very well. 24 hours. I expect you to fix any damaged done by this idea of yours._

 

“Aye aye!” The presence faded and Jimmy turned back to where he'd been watching Matt and Brian. “Even if this doesn't work, it's going to be funny as shit.”

 

The presence brushed up against him once more _Unfortunately, I agree._

 

He stared down at his friends with a wide grin and rubbed his hands together. Time to get to work.  

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Had either of them been awake, they would have seen the shadowy, ghost-like figure of Jimmy appear in their room, they also would have seen the glowing swirls of color that connected them, each color blending and mixing as it settled into a different body. Jimmy wondered what would have freaked them out more, seeing their dead bandmate or their own souls. It was hard to tell with them. He also would have liked to seen it, it would have been fucking hilarious. Once their souls had settled, Jimmy grinned and clapped his hands, “Twenty-four hours boys, you’d better make this worth my while.”

 

Neither heard him, and he smirked at them before vanishing, they’d find out soon enough.

 

 

The shrill beep of the alarm clock going off pulled Matt out of the uneasy sleep he’d fallen into. He’d gotten used to sharing a bed with Brian, and sleeping alone was just weird. Coupled with the fight they’d had, it was a wonder Matt got any sleep at all. Stretching out with a sigh, he rolled off the bed, groaning when his head pulsed in pain. “Brian’s shit is everywhere.” He mumbled to himself, stepping over a boot and carefully avoiding a pair of sunglasses. Brian would kill him if he stepped on them.

 

Leaning over the sink, he splashed water on his face, using his hands to wipe it away.

He looked up at the mirror, taking in tired green eyes and smudged eyeliner…wait. He blinked and stared harder, hoping that what he was seeing was merely a trick of the light, or maybe he was still asleep. That wasn’t his face. He looked down, seeing the familiar words across the chest, the monsters spiraling down the arm. Those weren’t his tattoos.

 

Matt hurried back into the bedroom, staring in shock at the body—his body—laying on the bed he’d gone to sleep in last night. This, this couldn’t be happening. “What the actual fuck?!”

 

Leaning over the bed he grabbed his face between his hands, hoping that any minute now he’d wake up.

 

“Ow, what the fuck!” Brian growled, opening his eyes and trying to shift away from the hands. Brian had expected several things to happen when he woke up. Uncomfortable tension between him and Matt, having to rush to the bus because he overslept. Waking up to his own face was not one of those.

 

He sat up in shock, staring as his own hand pointed at him, trying to find words. “I’m not still drunk am I?” It certainly wouldn’t be the first time, although he can’t ever remember getting so drunk he’d hallucinated like this before.

 

“Oh god what the fuck is going on?!” His body—Matt, if the green eyes were anything to go by—said, backing away from him.

 

He scrambled to his knees “I don’t know! Is this a dream? Smack me!” That was supposed to wake you up right? His head jerked to the side as Matt slapped him, and reality didn’t change, he didn’t jerk awake to find Matt sleeping in the other bed. His own face was still staring back at him.

 

“Did that hurt?”

 

“Like a bitch.” He rubbed the sore spot.

 

“Oh god this isn’t a dream!”

 

He wrapped an arm around himself, feeling the familiar muscles, the other cradled his sore cheek “Matt, I’m scared,” that was an understatement, he was terrified “I’m in your body, and you’re in mine!”

 

“No fucking shit!” Matt never liked it when people stated the obvious.

“We should call somebody!”

 

“Like who?!” Matt yelled, spreading his arms in frustration.

 

“I don’t know! A scientist?!” He recoiled back “Don’t hit me again!”

 

Pounding on the wall silenced them, “ _You two wanna shut the fuck up in there?!”_

“It’s Johnny, we need too—“he was silenced when Matt slapped a hand over his mouth.

 

“We’re not telling anyone about this until we figure it out!” he hissed, turning to call “Go away Johnny, I’m busy being a slut and giving my boyfriend morning sex like I should do more often!”

 

Brian fumed and contemplated biting the palm that rested over his mouth, a slut? Well, see if Matt got any kind of sex from him again.

 

“ _Well do it quieter, will ya!”_

“No promises, as you know, I, Brian, am obnoxiously loud!”

 

He shoved Matt away, not realizing his own strength until Matt went stumbling backwards. He looked down at Matt’s hands “Whoa, so this is what it’s like to be the Incredible Hulk. He’d only been on the receiving end of Matt’s full strength a few times, and he often forgot that the singer could really fuck someone up if he wanted too. But then he glared up at Matt, “What the fuck? I am not obnoxiously loud!”

 

Matt crossed his—Brian’s—his arms “Well everyone thinks you are—“

“They do not!” Brian’s glare intensified.

 

“—and if I’m gonna be you, I’ve got to make it believable.”

 

“Matt what the fuck is going on?”

 

Matt sighed “I don’t know Bri, I’m just as freaked out as you are.”

 

“What are we going to do?”

 

“I—I don’t know.”

 

“We can’t go out like this!” Brian said, gesturing between them.

 

“We’re going to have too, we hit the road in an hour and…oh god the show!” Matt gasped, remembering just why they had to leave so damn early. He ran across the room and picked up the guitar Brian always brought to the hotel with him, slipping the strap on and ignoring Brian’s indignant “Hey, put that down!” attempted to play one of the easier songs he knew was on the set list for tonight. The notes were right, but they came out slow and clumsy, nothing like the fast, perfect playing Brian was known for.

 

He groaned and pushed the guitar into Brian’s hands, “Play!”

 

Brian frowned, but played one of his solos, his fingers flying over the strings.

 

Matt sat down with a groan, dropping his face into his hands “Fuck, fuck, fuck, I’m in Synyster Gates body, and I can’t play guitar! Fuck! We need to cancel tonight’s show!”

 

“We can’t cancel!” Brian exclaimed, laying the guitar down and standing up to glare at Matt “This is the show we’re playing to make up for when you lost your voice! We can’t cancel at the same venue twice! Do you know what that would do to us?”

 

“Fuck you’re right.” Matt sighed “We can’t go out like this though, I mean, we can dress up like each other, but the fans will notice, everyone will notice!” he rubbed a hand over his face, what would the fans think, knowing they’d canceled for a second time? It wasn’t like they could come out and say what was wrong! If there was one thing Matt hated the most, it was disappointing the fans.

 

Brian pulled his arm down to look at him “We’ll figure it out, if worst comes to worst, then maybe we will cancel.”

 

Matt straightened up, crossing his arms determinedly “No, we’re not canceling. We…let’s just…yeah…figure it out. Oh god, we need to act like each other.”

 

Brian smiled weakly “Well, we know each other well enough, that shouldn’t be too hard.”  He stepped back and placed his hands on his hips “I’m M. Shadows and I like to play video games in my underwear.”

 

Matt smirked, placing a hand on his chest “I’m Synyster Gates and I never wear underwear.”

 

They stared at each other, and Matt could feel the panic rising in his chest “We’re fucked.”

 

“Big time.”

 

“Look, we have to leave soon. We’ll shower together to save time and we’ll figure this out along the way.”

 

Brian grinned, showering together was always fun and rarely ever did it save time “Yay, I love showering…together. Oh…” he grimaced “This is awkward, I don’t know if I can have sex with myself—hey!”

 

Matt scoffed and pushed him toward the bathroom “One, you do it all the time, it’s called jerking off, two, we’re not having sex! We need to get ready now!” Trust Brian to think with his dick first.

 

They stripping in silence, only glancing at each other briefly, it was beyond weird, seeing their selves like this, without the aid of a mirror. Only when Matt noticed Brian picking up the razor did he speak “Freeze! What are you doing with that razor?”

 

Brian smirked at him “When am I ever going to have a chance like this to shave your bush?”

 

Matt glared “You will do no such thing!”

Brian pouted and pointed at Matt’s groin “C’mon mountain man! Just a trim? You don’t need all this hair.”

 

Matt pointed at him threateningly “You touch my bush and I’ll shave off your beard.”

 

Brian gaped and slapped a hand over his beard, dropping the razor “No!”

 

Matt smirked “Then we have an agreement, no razors.”

 

“Fine, fine! Just leave my baby alone!” He was proud of his beard! He couldn’t will facial hair into existence like the rest of his testosterone fueled band seemingly did!

 

He watched Matt adjust the shower and scooped the razor off the floor, pushing Matt down onto the ledge, kneeling in front of him.

 

“Hey! I said no razors!” Matt exclaimed, trying to jerk away from Brian.

 

“Fuck off, I’m shaving your—er, my—legs!”

 

“Fucking girl.” Matt smirked, trying to keep his legs still as Brian ran the razor over them. The insult held no heat, he’d seen Brian doing this a thousand times now.

 

“I do this for you, stupid fucker.” Matt would find out soon enough.

 

They showered as quickly as they could, knowing they were running out of time, privately freaking out in their own minds. How the hell were they going to do this? Sure, they’d been dating for years, and had been friends for even longer, but to act like each other? Hell, Matt didn’t understand half the things Brian did on a good day!

 

Grabbing the first pair of jeans he saw, he slipped them on, grimacing as the tight material gripped his legs, _well,_ he mused, _I think I figured out why Brian shaves. Fucking masochist,_ Zipping up with a frown, he stepped toward Brian, pulling at the jeans where he was almost sure they were giving a new definition to “blue-balls”.

 

“Holy shit, how do you walk in these?” he wobbled toward Brian, trying to force the jeans to stretch some.

 

Brian rolled his eyes “Don’t be a baby.”

 

“There is seriously no circulation from my balls down!” he looked up from trying to adjust his crotch and frowned “Hey! Put some boxers on, I don’t free-ball!”

 

Brian just rolled his eyes again and cinched Matt’s belt tighter “Let me do your hair and makeup, you know I don’t go out in public looking like that.”

 

Matt huffed “Fine.”

 

Fifteen minutes and what seemed like a can of hairspray later, Matt stared into the mirror sulking. His eyes felt weird, and his head was sticky.

Brian smirked next to him “Gorgeous as usual.”

 

“How’s that ‘I don’t have an ego’ thing working out for you?” Matt growled, poking at his hair, only to have his finger slapped away.

 

It didn’t take them much longer to throw their shit into their bags and soon enough they were on the elevator, and Matt tried not to let his panic show. “Ok, you’re Matt, and I’m Brian. Act as normal as possible and don’t raise suspicion.” Fuck, they could do this.

 

“Easier said than done.” Brian muttered.

 

They could do this.

 

The elevator doors slid open and Brian smirked, sauntering forward, “M. Fucking Shadows in the house!”

 

Matt groaned. They were fucking screwed.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, let me tell you something, trying to figure out how to have Matt and Brian refer to their new bodies was hell and I commend anyone who can flawlessly write body-swapping.


End file.
